Red letter day for the Spirit of Shankly
Jun 14 2008 by Tony Barrett, Liverpool Echo
ON Monday, the Spirit of Shankly (SOS) will celebrate six months in existence as the country's first ever football supporters union.
It has come a long way since the day it was formed on February 16 when around 1,000 Liverpool fans packed into the Olympia on West Derby Road ahead of the ill-fated FA Cup tie against Barnsley.
That rally was followed by a march to Anfield with all present united in their desire to see Liverpool Football Club rid of American owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett.
Despite the good turnout and the clear and vivid passion on display SOS was not without its critics and there was no shortage of Nay’sayers who wanted to know what a disparate group of fans from Liverpool and beyond could do to challenge the corporate might of a pair of American millionaires based thousands of miles away from the Olympia.
In truth, it remains a forbidding challenge and one which may never be achieved in a football world where money doesn't just talk, it shouts, screams and hollers.
That doesn't mean SOS hasn't made progress though. Far from it.
In those six short months it has established a fully operative committee comprising of a chair, vice-chair, treasurer, secretary, club liaison officer and fans liaison officer among others.
Meetings are held regularly and continue to be well attended and in the near future a city centre office will be opened to process the membership applications which continue to flood in on a daily basis and a fully operational website will also be set up.
Increasingly, the union is starting to resemble a fans co-operative with issues which concern supporters of all clubs being tackled in an age of spiralling ticket prices and related costs.
A fortnight ago, I was invited to attend their latest gathering to observe their work at first hand and found it to be as professional as any council meeting with a full agenda established at the very outset and reports and updates presented by the treasurer, secretary and chair.
There was no shortage of debate and nor should there be in a movement which was set up to represent the best interests of all Liverpool fans and not just a local clique of like minded individuals.
The debate was lively and well informed but never threatened to get out of hand and although there were occasions when agreeing to disagree was the best course of action resolutions were passed and conclusions were arrived at, much as they are in any board meeting.
The level of professionalism on show should not come as a surprise though as many of those involved come from the kind of background where such meetings take place on an almost daily basis and their experience is telling.
Equally importantly though, there are those who do not hail from a professional background and who are ready and willing to try and break through the traditional constraints which have left football fans at the mercy of profiteers for far too long.
After the recent experience of Athens and Istanbul, not to mention just about every other European trip Liverpool have been involved in, SOS are now looking at ways of making European and domestic travel more affordable to the average Reds fan.
Talks are ongoing with travel operators aimed at chartering flights for Champions League away games and a coach is likely to be laid on for the Reds forthcoming pre-season friendly against Rangers at Ibrox.
These initiatives are a small step in the right direction for a movement which has come an awfully long way in a very short time.
Should the progress they have made in their first six months be repeated in the next six then there is no telling as to how far SOS could go.
But as long as they continue to have the best interests of fans at heart then no-one should bet against them achieving their objectives, even if their avowed determination to rid their club of a pair of owners they have no time for does remain the tallest of tall orders.
http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/liver...0252-21071196/
Jun 14 2008 by Tony Barrett, Liverpool Echo
ON Monday, the Spirit of Shankly (SOS) will celebrate six months in existence as the country's first ever football supporters union.
It has come a long way since the day it was formed on February 16 when around 1,000 Liverpool fans packed into the Olympia on West Derby Road ahead of the ill-fated FA Cup tie against Barnsley.
That rally was followed by a march to Anfield with all present united in their desire to see Liverpool Football Club rid of American owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett.
Despite the good turnout and the clear and vivid passion on display SOS was not without its critics and there was no shortage of Nay’sayers who wanted to know what a disparate group of fans from Liverpool and beyond could do to challenge the corporate might of a pair of American millionaires based thousands of miles away from the Olympia.
In truth, it remains a forbidding challenge and one which may never be achieved in a football world where money doesn't just talk, it shouts, screams and hollers.
That doesn't mean SOS hasn't made progress though. Far from it.
In those six short months it has established a fully operative committee comprising of a chair, vice-chair, treasurer, secretary, club liaison officer and fans liaison officer among others.
Meetings are held regularly and continue to be well attended and in the near future a city centre office will be opened to process the membership applications which continue to flood in on a daily basis and a fully operational website will also be set up.
Increasingly, the union is starting to resemble a fans co-operative with issues which concern supporters of all clubs being tackled in an age of spiralling ticket prices and related costs.
A fortnight ago, I was invited to attend their latest gathering to observe their work at first hand and found it to be as professional as any council meeting with a full agenda established at the very outset and reports and updates presented by the treasurer, secretary and chair.
There was no shortage of debate and nor should there be in a movement which was set up to represent the best interests of all Liverpool fans and not just a local clique of like minded individuals.
The debate was lively and well informed but never threatened to get out of hand and although there were occasions when agreeing to disagree was the best course of action resolutions were passed and conclusions were arrived at, much as they are in any board meeting.
The level of professionalism on show should not come as a surprise though as many of those involved come from the kind of background where such meetings take place on an almost daily basis and their experience is telling.
Equally importantly though, there are those who do not hail from a professional background and who are ready and willing to try and break through the traditional constraints which have left football fans at the mercy of profiteers for far too long.
After the recent experience of Athens and Istanbul, not to mention just about every other European trip Liverpool have been involved in, SOS are now looking at ways of making European and domestic travel more affordable to the average Reds fan.
Talks are ongoing with travel operators aimed at chartering flights for Champions League away games and a coach is likely to be laid on for the Reds forthcoming pre-season friendly against Rangers at Ibrox.
These initiatives are a small step in the right direction for a movement which has come an awfully long way in a very short time.
Should the progress they have made in their first six months be repeated in the next six then there is no telling as to how far SOS could go.
But as long as they continue to have the best interests of fans at heart then no-one should bet against them achieving their objectives, even if their avowed determination to rid their club of a pair of owners they have no time for does remain the tallest of tall orders.
http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/liver...0252-21071196/
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